The Shinigami Hunter
by VenomSpider33
Summary: Quincy Hunter reboot. the adopted son of a famous huntress; a young Faunus fed up with the injustice dealt to her kind; a swordsman seeking retribution for a betrayal; an odd young man with a mysterious past. This unlikely group will come together to learn how to become humanity's next guardians, all while combating a storm that grows closer and closer.
1. Chapter 1

Shinigami Hunter: Chapter One

 **AN: alright, here we are. First chapter of the Shinigami Hunter. I'm a little…rusty at writing, so please excuse that, but as always I welcome criticism, as long as you keep it constructive, and keep in mind this is only a trailer. The first RWBY trailers offered little in dialogue and character, so I tried keeping it closer to that. There'll be much more character in later chapters, but until then, enjoy this first chapter!**

 **Prologue: Arrival**

October 10, 17 years ago

In the city of Vale, in front of a house, a set of Japanese rice doors opened, and out stepped two figures. One a man with short, dark hair and wearing a Haori with the kanji for 'ten' on it over a black kimono and the other a woman with long brown hair carrying a bundle. "I can't believe their making us do this, Isshin." The woman whimpered.

"I know Masaki. Believe me, I'm as happy about this as you are, but unless we do this, they'll execute him without a second thought.. At least this way we know he'll be safe and able to have a life here, Masaki." Isshin said, and Masaki looked at the bundle in her arms, revealing a sleeping baby with orange hair.

"Little Ichigo, I'm sorry we won't get to see you grow up." Masaki said, tears welling in her eyes as she kissed the baby's forehead. She set the baby on the doorstep, and knocked on the door, reading the name on the door. 'Ms. Goodwitch, please take care of my son.' She thought, and ran through the rice doors to join her husband, watching Ichigo as the doors closed, a tear falling down her face as the doors closed. The door of the house opened, and out stepped a blonde woman in her late 20's sat alone in her home. She wore her hair in a bun, with a single curl hanging free, wearing a white long sleeved shirt with puffy arms, black pants, and a pair of glasses over her bright green eyes.

"Who on Earth could be knocking at this ungodly hour?" Glynda Goodwitch asked, looking around and searching for the culprits. "Damn kids…" she muttered, and was about to return inside, before she heard what sounded like crying. Looking down, she could not believe what she saw…

It was a baby boy, probably not older than 3 months, wrapped in a black blanket with skin reminicent of the inhabitants of eastern nations, with the beginnings of orange hair visible on top of its head. "Oh my god!" Glynda gasped, picking up the crying chil, and looking around for any sign of who left it. "Who's child is this?! Who left him here?!" She yelled, only to receive no answer. Dumbfounded by who would leave an infant in weather like this, she retreated with him inside out of the cold. "It's ok, you're warm now!" Glynda said, only for the child to continue crying. In his screaming, a sort of scroll fell from the blanket, and Glynda used her semblance to bring it into her hand. Unfolding it, she saw the message was written in strange characters she could not read, only for them to begin to rearrange themselves into something she could read.

 _To Glynda Goodwitch:_

 _This is Ichigo Kurosaki. His birthday is July 15, and his name means 'One Who Prorects' when it is written in our native language. Unfortunately, circumstances beyond our control have forced us to give him up for his own safety, and after much consideration, we have chosen you as the best person to look after him and guide him along the right path._

 _He has tremendous power within him, and with this comes a great darkness. However, we believe that you will be able to give him the guidance he needs, and will endure Ichigo becomes a wonderful man._

 _If you feel you are unable to carry this burden we reluctantly place upon you, then all we ask is that you make sure he is placed in a loving home. Whatever you do, we have faith your choice shall be the right one, regardless of what we wish._

 _Sincerely, Masaki Kurosaki and Isshin Shi_ ba.

Glynda must have read the scroll at least a dozen times, trying to process the message. These people chose HER to care for their child? She had no qualifications for being a parent, hell she'd only just started teaching at Beacon! She couldn't even hold down a romantic partner for longer than a few months, let alone raise another human being! Already, Glynda was thinking about what she could do. 'They said it's alright if I gave him to someone else, but who? I could give him to an orphanage and…no, many orphanages are corrupt. According to Commander Ironwood, many often sell children that aren't adopted into slavery for a quick buck. Maybe someone else would be willing to? I'd have to put out an we, file paperwork, interview-' she began to think, when the baby began to cry. "No, don't do that!" She protested, holding it away from her. When Ichigo continued to cry, she frantically thought back to when she'd had to babysit as a part time job, and cradled the child, holding him close to her. Soon, Ichigo's crying began to subside, and Glynda felt something spread through her. It felt nice and warm, and most of all, it felt…right, feeling the infant snuggle into her shoulder. ' _Ichigo Kurosaki, huh_?' She thought, looking at the child. 'Maybe I can do this…'

Trailer One: K: The Deadly Strawberry

Today, Signal Academy

On the island of Patch's leading primary combat school, students gathered on turnstones of an arena to watch a young man with orange hair and brown eyes. He was dressed in a long sleeved, form fitting white shirt underneath a black shit with sleeves reaching down to the elbow, with black combat pants with white piping along his thighs, wearing black boots with white laces. On his back, he carried what resembled a large trench knife wrapped I bandages strapped to a thick red, rosary-like strap around his chest, with a silver hilt with a trigger just below the blade. This young man was Ichigo Kurosaki-Goodwitch, the adopted son of the esteemed Huntress Glynda Goodwitch. "Well, are we doing this or what? I don't have all day, you know." Ichigo said, and in the stands over looking the arena, a middle aged man with gray spiky hair wearing a a gray dress shirt and a tattered cloak sat with a scroll in one hand.

"Don't get your knickers in a twist, Berry boy." Qrow Branwen said, a flask in his other hand. "I know you're eager to get out of here and spread your wings, sow oats, yadda yadda, but this is your graduation exam, and we wouldn't ya to mess up and stay here another year, now would we?" Qrow said, taking a swig from his flask.

"And get taught by your drunk ass for another year? No thanks. Can we go ahead and get started, or do I need to have someone push the right buttons for you?" Ichigo retorted, causing Qrow to smirk.

"Don't say I didn't give you a chance to prepare." He said, pressing a series of buttons on the scroll and causing a door to open. Ichigo gripped the hilt of his blade in anticipation, before two voices in particular drew his attention.

"Go Ichigo! Kick their asses!" Yang Xiao Long, his longtime friend, cheered from behind Qrow, sitting next to her younger sister, Ruby Rose.

"You can do it!" Ruby cheered, and Ichigo acknowledged them with a nod, before he began to tune out the cheers, focusing on the being emerging from the cage.

Out stepped a young man with teal hair wearing a teal colored pirate's coat with gray trims over a plate of samurai armor on his chest over a gray under shit, wearing gray pants, black boots, a black bandanna on his left shoulder, and a belt with two swords strapped to his hip, one clad in an ivory scabbard and the other in a teal sheath. "Kurosaki, allow me to introduce you to Mr. Zephyr Turchese. He'll be teaching here next year, but right now, he's the proctor for the rest of your exam." Qrow explained.

"Enough with the chit chat, Qrow." Zephyr said, untying his bandanna from his arm. "Alright Kurosaki, here are the rules for your test: don't lose to me. You beat me, you pass, but if you don't, you fail and have to retake this exam at a later date." The man explained, tying the bandanna around his head.

"That's a little unconventional, don't you think?" Ichigo replied, readying his blade. The wrappings began to unwrap themselves disappearing as they did so, revealing a black blade with a silver edge, the blade sloped slightly like a cannon. Zephyr began to remove his own blades from their sheaths. In his left hand, he held what appeared to be a normal teal colored katana with a gold guard, and in his right hand held a teal double edged, fork bladed sword with a gray trigger at the hilt.

"Not every encounter you have with the enemy will adhere to what you're used to, Kid." Zephyr said, and he and Ichigo stared each other down. Zephyr made the first move, and charged at Ichigo with unbelievable speed, slashing with the Katana. Ichigo quickly blocked with his blade, but the force behind the attack caused him to slide back. Zephyr quickly went on the offensive, unleashing a rapid series of slashes. Ichigo maneuvered the massive blade to black as best he could, blocking many of the strikes and dodging the rest. Ichigo quickly jumped back and aimed the tip of his weapon at the future teacher, pulling the trigger four times and firing out small, blue 'bullets' of energy. Zephyr flawlessly blocked each shot, and slashed the air with his katana, sending out what appeared to be blades of wind. Ichigo blocked it, but Zephyr took this opportunity to dash in close, only for Ichigo to jump above him and press a button on the hilt of his sword. The edge of the sword slid down to the other end of the hilt, forming the shape of a longbow as an energy string materialized between the two point. Ichigo pulled back on the string, materializing a blue arrow made of arua and firing it at Zephyr.

The older man blocked the arrow, and Ichigo began to fire many more. Zephyr knew he might not be able to block every one, so he pointed the former sword and depressed the trigger, causing a stream of flame to shoot out and intercept the arrows. Ichigo landed on the ground and began to strafe Zephyr, firing arrows as he leapt around him. Zephyr blocked each shot, and noticed Ichigo seemed to be moving faster, pondering what the student was up to. He received his answer when Ichigo changed his bow back to sword mode mid-leap, and once he was back on the ground, rushed Zephyr and slashed with his weapon. Zephyr blocked with his weapons, but the force behind the attack was more than he expected, cracks appearing in the floor as he pushed back. Now it was Ichigo's turn to go on the offensive, unleashing a rapid series of slashes against Zephyr. Zephyr did his best to block each strike, but each strike was faster and more fast paced than the last.

' _Looks like Ichigo's semblance finally kicked in_.' Qrow thought to himself, taking notes about the fight on his scroll. ' _The ability to increase one's own strength the longer a battle goes on…it's one helluva useful power, but someone as headstrong as Ichigo might not always have the patience to wait until it activates. The only reason he's taking his time here is because he wants the best grade he can get, but in a real fight_ …' Qrow analyzed, not wanting to picture the worst case scenario, and glanced towards the aura meter on the scroll. Zephyr's was in the yellow, while Ichigo's was yellow as well, but was close to the red zone. 'Either way, this is going to end soon.'

Zephyr and Ichigo clashed blades once more, sparks flying off their swords as they entered a deadlock, before they each jumped back. "Not bad, Kid. You're turning out to be a lot more entertaining than I thought." Zephyr said.

"Back atcha, Professor." Ichigo panted out, still maintaining a grip on his sword, and Zephyr held both Swords in an x in front of him.

"Time to end this!" He declared, a teal glow surrounding him.

"Couldn't agree more!" Ichigo said, and held his blade in front of him, a blue aura surrounding him as his eyes glowed blue, channeling the rest of his arua into one final attack. They leapt at each other, clashing with an explosion of teal and blue light that caused everyone to shield their eyes. When the light died down, Qrow saw Ichigo and Zephyr standing opposite each other, before Ichigo began to wobble and collapse, only stopping from falling to the ground by using his sword for support.

"Ichigo!" Yang yelled out, jumping into the arena to support her friend. "You alright?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine." Ichigo reassured her, but the fact that he couldn't stand on his own said otherwise.

"You idiot, you know you always use WAY too much aura! One day you're going to overdo it, and I won't be there to pick you back up." Yang said, purring his arm over her shoulder and helping him up.

"Hey, Ichigo." Zephyr called, sheathing both blades, and panting himself. "Nice job out there. Almost had to use my semblance on you. Wouldn't have expected anything else from Ms. Goodwitch's kid."

"That's all fine and dandy, but I still failed your test." Ichigo replied, looking at the ground in shame, only for Zephyr to smirk.

"Look at the aura count." He said, pointing towards a large view screen on one of the arena walls that displayed aura during training battles. Ichigo looked at the screen, and couldn't believe what he saw.

On Ichigo's aura bar, the aura count was well in the red, with the dangerously low number of '15' displayed above it. Looking at Zephyr's, he was also in the red, and the number that was displayed next to his name…was '14'. "You finished with a higher aura count than me, so by tournament style rules, you officially win. So, I guess that means you pass." Zephyr declared, and relief filled Ichigo.

"Alright!" He cheered, pumping a fist in the air, and began to steady himself on his feet.

"Knew you could do it!" Yang said, patting him on the back, and Ruby came to join them, hugging Ichigo.

"Congrats!" She exclaimed, and the three began walking out of the arena, Ichigo slinging his blade back onto his back. "So, now that you passed, and Yang passed her test, does that mean you're both going to Beacon?"

"That's the plan. Someone's gotta keep this one from burning the place down." Ichigo answered, jerking a thumb at Yang, who pouted.

"Well somebody's gotta keep Strawberry here from running yourself dry." Yang retorted, causing a tick mark to appear on his forehead.

"Someone's gotta help you keep from failing, Blondie." Ichigo say back, and Qrow watched with a smile the two began to argue about who'd look out for who as they exited the arena, before his scroll chirped, indicating a message. Checking his inbox, he read the message.

 _Candy: Well? How'd it go?_

Qrow sighed, having been dreading this part, before replying.

 _Q: it went as expected. Turchese pushed him to his limits. No abnormal behavior._

 _Candy: excellent. Beacon will be the best place we can monitor his growth. Thank you for your assistance in this matter, Professor Branwen. The other members of our organization will take over from here._

Qrow let out a sigh, closing his scroll and heading towards his office. All this secret keeping made him feel…dirty, and not the fun kind of dirty. 'Good luck, Ichigo. You're going to need it.'

N **ext Time: L: Opportunity Cost**


	2. Trailer 2

**Trailer 2: L: Opportunity Cost**

 _"The ultimate tragedy is not the oppression and cruelty by the bad people, but the silence over that by the good people." –_ Martin Luther King

 **Kingdom of Mistral**

In an apartment situated in one of the poorer Faunus neighborhood, a hand removed a pair of scissors from a medicine cabinet before shutting, revealing a mirror. It showed a Faunus girl of 5 foot 3 around 17 years old, with an earthy skin tone, bright reddish-orange eyes, and lilac purple hair that fell down her back. Adorning her ears was a pair of purple ferret-like ears. At the moment, she wore a tank top and sweatpants, a bushy purple tail poking out from a hole in the waist of the sweatpants. The girl began using the scissors to cut her hair, soon being left with hair that fell a little past her shoulder, leaving her bangs untouched. However, just as she was about to put the scissors down, her eyes fixed on her ears, memories coming back.

 _"Faunus scum!"_

 _"We don't serve your kind here! Get out of here, you filthy animal!"_

 _"Hey, its one of those Faunus freaks! Get her!"_

Hands shaking, she opened the scissors, placing one ear between the blades, and was about to cut…

 _"Do not hate them for nature, Veronica. It is human nature to fear and hate what they view as abnormal. This extends to us, the Grimm, differing sexuality…in a world with as many differing wills and views such as her, it is often the norm for the majority to lash out at those viewed as abnormal. However, it is up to us, the minority, to rise above the hatred, to take pride in our differences, and to change their minds by showing them we are not the animals they think we are."_

Veronica paused as the blade was about to cleave through the ear, hands shaking as she recalled the words spoken to her oh so long ago. She tried cutting again, but each time she tried, she just…couldn't. A look of self-disgust appeared on her face, before throwing the scissors onto the bathroom counter, her head sinking as tears began forming in her eyes. "Ronnie, hurry up and get ready! You can't be late today!" A female voice called from the living room, snapping Veronica out of her episode.

"Got it, mom!" She called back, and began to get dressed. Soon, her lilac purple hair was tied in a small bun, soft bangs covering her forehead, and two long strands framing her face that reached her shoulders.

She dressed herself in a dark black high collared shirt underneath a lilac flak jacket with pouches containing ammo clips, dark black pants, lilac leg guards and knee pads, with dark black combat boots. On her arms she slid on long gloves that reached her elbows underneath lilac arm guards, with three sniper rounds on each arm guard, and wore a long black scar with a lilac line in the middle wrapped around her neck with the ends going down her back, serving as a combat muffler. Now standing completely dressed, 17-year old Veronica Lilac exited the bathroom into the living area of her family's small apartment. Her mother, a middle-aged deer Faunus with black hair with antlers sticking out of it, sat on the couch in her pajamas, watching the news. "There's some toast on the counter." Taylor Lilac said to her oldest daughter , one eye on the news and another eye on Veronica.

"Thanks, mom. Where're Zack and Liv?" Veronica asked, taking the toast from the counter of the kitchen just adjacent to the living area, glancing at the TV.

"School's closed today, so I'm letting them sleep in this morning. News says the school got vandalized again, and they don't want the kids jeopardized until they know there's no threat." Taylor said, and Veronica clenched her teeth. Unfortunately, this was all too common in the area of the capital they lived in, known to the residents of Mistral as "The Farm" due to the large number of Faunus neighborhoods. Oftentimes, humans would come in harboring some sort of grudge against the Faunus, be it from the Rebellions, bred-in hatred, or just straight up human supremacy, and treat the neighborhood as their own personal playground. The police always said they were looking for culprits behind it, but always 'found no evidence pointing towards the culprits,' meaning they had sat on their asses and let the trail go cold.

"Well, tell them I said bye. Love you, mom." Veronica said, kissing her mother's head before exiting the apartment. ' _Damn humans… why can't they just leave us alone?'_ She thought, descending the stairs of their apartment complex towards her destination.

 **Sanctum Academy**

Veronica, now with what appeared to be a black sniper rifle with an axe shaped bayonet with a sharp spike on the tip on her back, was now on a Bullshark travelling towards one of the swamps that were all throughout the kingdom, with two other students around her age and a teacher. One was Cardin Winchester, the scourge of every Faunus at Sanctum Academy; the other was Pyrrha Nikos, a prize winning Tournament fighter that had won several championships, who Veronica had only seen around the academy a few times. "Alright, listen up! For your graduation exam, we're dropping you in Ramsey Swamp, an area crawling with all kinds of Grimm. You'll have 30 minutes to survive and eliminate as many Grimm as you can. You will be graded on both number of kills and technique. Failure to pass means you will remain here next year. Understood?"

"Got it, sir. Though, how're you going to tell the Grimm apart from the animals?" Cardin said, jerking a thumb at Veronica, who simply ignored him.

"Stow that attitude, Winchester! Your drop point is coming up!" The teacher said, the doors of the bullshark opening to reveal a swamp marshland. Cardin smirked, before jumping off into the swamp.

"Don't let him bother you. Just do your best!" Pyrrha said to Veronica, who was taken slightly offguard by the redhead's cheery attitude.

"Er, thanks." The young Faunus replied, unsure of how to respond.

"Nikos, your turn!" The teacher said once they were a mile away from Cardin, and Pyrrha shot Veronica two thumbs up, before leaping out into the swamp. "Lilac, get out there!" The teacher said a mile later, and Veronica nodded, leaping out of the airship. She fell through the trees, landing on a thick branch and leaping off each branch until she hit the ground. ( Play this: youtube. Com?= -5fAz4rmOQ4) Taking her rifle from her back, before she heard twigs snapping around her, and soon four Beowolves emerged from the trees, bonelike protrusions and white masks leering at her, before one leapt at her.

Veronica fired her rifle, sniper round piercing the Grimm's skull and dropping it. Another swiped at her, only for her to sidestep it, impaling on the spike of her bayonet and firing, blowing a hole in its chest. The remaining Beowolves howled, and soon ten additional Grimm, ranging from Beowolves, Ursi, and a Boarbatusk or two. They surrounded her, and Veronica simply smirked. Pressing on her rifle, she began to spin it as it unfolded into a voulge, the axe-bayonet of the rifle form turning into the head with a spike set along the backface, a small hole appearing in the tip of the spike at the end, and an additional spike at the end. She expertly twirled it around her, hefting it as if it weighed nothing at all, before landing in a combat pose. The Grimm and her ran at each other, Veronica taking the first move by swinging her weapon, the axe cleaving straight through a Beowolf, before swinging back the other way and using the back face spike to stab another Beowolf in the head. A Boarbatusk charged at her from behind, but Veronica simply jabbed backwards, impaling it on the rear spike. Pulling the weapon from the dissolving Grimm, it quickly folded back into its rifle form, and Veronica quickly took aim and fired at the Grimm. Some managed to dodge, but not before she cut down three more Ursi. Now only six Grimm, consisting of a Boarbatusk, three Beowolves, and two Ursa Minors, and Veronica unfolded her weapon back into voulge mode, leveled the front at the remaining Grimm, and charged. She expertly spun the weapon, limbs flying as the spikes on both ends skewered the remaining Grimm, and soon a panting Veronica was left surrounded by dismembered and dissolving Grimm. She planted her weapon on the ground, leaning on it as she tried to catch her breath…only for a massive roar to originate from behind her.

Turning towards the source, the young Faunus was greeted with a most unwelcome site: an Ogre, a massive, humanoid Grimm twice the size of an average sized human, with a large black belly, clawed hands that hit like hammers, bony spikes all along the arms, and club-like fists, and a fanged maw situated below the Grimm's signature mask. It leered at the much smaller girl, its body language saying " _Get out of my swamp!"_ It roared at Veronica, and ran at her, each monstrous footstep shaking the ground, and swung its club at Veronica. She back flipped away just before the club impacted the ground, before firing on it with her sniper rifle. It shrugged off the bullets effortlessly, and ran at her faster than it did before. It swung its fist, and was about to connect…only for the club to pass right through Veronica as if she was never even there. Veronica took advantage of the Ogre's confusion to run between its legs, slashing its right knee as she ran under it, causing it to stagger, and ran to a position a few feet away, before charging once more. Just before reaching the Ogre, she stabbed her weapon into the ground and used her momentum to vault onto the Ogre's back and tried to drive the spear end of her Voulge into the creature's neck, only for it to reach behind it and grab her off its back. It roared in her face, before throwing her into a tree, with Veronica barely having enough time to condense her aura to soften the impact, but she still impacted with enough force that her head was ringing, blood streaming down her forehead as she fell to the ground.

' _Damn, shouldn't have used my semblance so early…should've waited until the right moment.'_ Veronica thought, unable to convince her body to move as the Ogre lumbered towards her. Veronica's semblance, which her younger sister had nicknamed Fade, allowed her to phase through solid objects as if they weren't there. It had proven useful for weeks when her mother didn't make enough to both pay bills and buy food, but the downside was that it required so much concentration to use that, during combat, Veronica could only stay intangible for a second, maybe two, without jeopardizing the battle. ' _So, this is the end, huh? Guess I shouldn't be too surprised, anyway…'_ Veronica thought, the Ogre savoring her terror. _'Mom, Zack, Liv… I'm sorry. I guess in the end, I just wasn't good enough to-'_

 _"Do not surrender! You are stronger than you know, daughter, and so this world will go out of its way to tear you apart, but you mustn't let it! No matter how hard it may seem, no matter your opponent, and no matter if it's the easy way out, you must rise above it all!"_

Veronica's eyes widened, her thoughts of preparing to meet her end being replaced with words she had not thought on in a long time, and her left arm twitched, before her hand balled into a fist. A lilac glow surrounded her body as she slammed one hand to the ground and picked up her weapon with the other, slowly rising. The ogre was visibly startled by the fact she was still alive, and she stared right into its red eyes. "Well? Come on!" She yelled, and rushed the monster. It swung its club, but the Faunus easily phased through it, before dropping down and sliding under the beast's legs yet again. However, this time, she held up the voulge horizontally instead of slashing, and both spikes sliced through the ogre's ankles, slicing tendons and causing the massive beast to fall to its knees. Leaping onto its back, she used a bony spike on its back as leverage to finally reach the back of its neck, and with a mighty yell, drove the spear end of her weapon right through the back of the Ogre's neck. It spasmed slightly, before slumping to the ground and beginning to dissolve. Veronica, hair matting from the blood from her head wound, slumped against her weapon, blood and sweat mixing as a beeping originated from the scroll in her back pocket, signifying her 30 minutes were up, and stared up at the sky through the trees of the swamp.

 _'Heh…guess nothing can keep you from getting on my ass, huh dad?'_ Veronica thought, hearing the whine of Bullshark engines, as images of an older male Faunus with ferret features and a hair color similar to hers appeared before her. ' _You stupid old man…did you really think you could change things between human and Faunus? That you could just…change things with your words?'_ Veronica asked, tears welling as she offhandedly acknowledged the instructor telling her she'd passed. ' _Did you ever think your family would rather have you here, rather than your words?'_ Veronica was now on the Bullshark, ignoring Pyrrha's congratulations and Cardin's insults, shutting her yes to keep the tears from falling, only for her scroll to vibrate with a new message. Quickly opening her mobile device, she read the message:

 _Ms. Veronica Lilac, congratulations on passing your exam. We look forward to monitoring your career as a Huntress. Your father, though ultimately having a different world view than us, proved very inspiring to our cause. We would be honored if you would consider joining us, and strive towards making a difference._

Veronica read the message, and scrolled all the way down to the bottom, eyes widening when she saw the signature at the bottom: a red wolf's head in front of three red claw marks.

 **Next time: E: The Emerald Knight**


	3. Trailer 3

**Trailer 3: E: The Emerald Knight**

 **AN: Did you guys really think I'd leave this guy out on this? This is my baby right here, the first OC I ever truly gave a damn about. Some of you have been here with me since Ed made his first debut in the Emerald Knight, and he's undergone quite a few changes since that first chapter I wrote on that Labor Day weekend, all those years ago. These changes have been made with the help of my good friend, Ghost Fire 6, and sUbSoNiCSoundwave. Whelp; let's get this show on the road.**

 ** _This is dedicated to Jarrod._**

 **Kalico, Atlas**

In a bar located in a small mining town near the border between Atlas and Vale, the barkeep served his patrons, though there were only a small handful of people in the bar at the moment. "Gotta love slow days like this…" he muttered, when the door to the bar swung open, revealing two figures in different colored cloaks. One was an older woman wearing a black cloak with the hood down, with gray hair in a sort of pixie cut that framed her face. Her compatriot was a younger man about 17 years old, 6 feet with messy green hair the same color as his eyes, slightly reaching the nape of his neck with a few bangs in front of his eyes, wearing a green cloak, but the barkeep noticed what looked like armor framing both sides of his head.

"Got room for two?" The woman asked, and the barkeep gestured to two stools at the bar.

"He old enough to be in here?" The barkeep asked, gesturing at the woman's companion.

"You really going to turn away business on a day like this?" The young man retorted, gesturing around the empty bar.

"Just get him some juice and a Sippy cup, and he'll be fine. I'll take whatever you've got." THe woman said, much to the irritation of the younger man. "He raises a valid point, though. Evening shift in the mines should've just ended, so there should be plenty of people in here right about now." She inquired, looking around the bar as they took their seats.

"You serious? Everyone's too busy with the strike." The barkeep asked, taking out two glasses, filling one with ale and the other with soda, passing them to the odd pair.

"What strike?" The young man asked, and as he reached for the glass with his right hand, the barkeep noticed the telltale silver plating of a prosthetic limb.

"You mean you two came all the way out here and don't know anything about the strike?"

"Not a thing. We've been travelling around Remnant for a while now, and are just stopping for a breather on our way back to Atlas." The woman explained, taking a sip of her drink.

"Well, as you already know, this town is built around a decent sized Dust mine owned by the Schnee Dust Company, which provides most of the jobs around here, like my husband and his family. Even on the worst years, we still haul in a pretty decent sum." The barkeep explained, resuming his polishing. "However, recently, conditions have become…less than favorable. Some of the safety equipment's starting to break down, making a lot of the miners reluctant to go into the mines."

"So the strike's about getting better equipment? Seems awfully overdramatic when all they could do is just place a requisition order." The young man reasoned.

"Except there's more to it than just needing new equipment, isn't there?" The woman asked, and Barkeep nodded.

"That's right. You probably haven't heard, but lately, the White Fang's been stepping up their attacks on the Schnees, such as destroying Dust shipments and harassing the mines. A few weeks ago, they attacked a train heading through Forever Fall in Vale carrying a pretty hefty shipment of Dust, including some from our mine. After such a huge loss, the higher ups decided to cut wages to try and still make some sort of profit-"

"And the miners didn't take too kindly to that." The young man finished, and Barkeep nodded.

"Exactly. No one's willing to step on foot in the mines with faulty equipment working for peanuts, hence the strike." Barkeep explained. "The SDC is starting to listen, and just sent an official here to negotiate for better working conditions."

"Really?" The woman amusingly said. "Didn't expect that old glacier to send one of those spineless penguins from Atlas all the way to an area like this. Let me guess, they showed up with enough Atlas security to fight a small army." The barkeep chortled slightly at that.

"Bingo. Our local police chief is an old friend of mine, and he told me the other day that one of the Schnee heiresses was assigned as security." The Barkeep noticed the young man perk up at hearing this.

"Really? Did he say which one it was?" He asked, and the woman chuckled a little bit.

"Calm down, Ed, it's probably Winter. You really think the old man would send Weiss all the way down here?" She asked, and got out of her chair, headed towards the door. "C'mon. Might as well say hello while we're in the same town." She instructed, and the young man, now identified as Ed followed her out. The Barkeep watched them go, before realizing something after they left.

"Hey wait! You didn't pay for your drinks!"

 **Kalico Town Hall**

Outside the town hall of the mining town, a young woman stood at the doors. She was tall, with pale skin, white hair tied in a bun at the back of her head with bangs brushed off to the right side of her head, wearing a white Atlesian military coat with the sleeves exposing her arms from her elbows to her shoulders, the coat buttoned over a gray corset over a white undershirt, with white pants and gray boots that extended past her knees, with what looked like a dueling saber hanging on her right hip. "Secure the perimeter. I don't want to risk even an insect getting in." Winter Schnee ordered to the Atlesian soldiers under her command, and next to her walked an older woman dressed in a black business suit.

"Are you sure this is necessary, Ms. Schnee?" Margaret Harken, one of the Schnee Dust Company's top negotiators, asked her escort.

"There have been multiple White Fang sightings in this area, not to mention the chance of a Grimm wandering in and killing everyone." Winter stated. "My father asked me to ensure the negotiations went smoothly, and I intend on fulfilling his expectations. Now, why don't you head inside and prepare. Kalico's representative should be here shortly, and-"

"Hey, Winny!" A voice called out, and Margaret noticed a vein bulge on Winter's forehead.

"I know that voice." She stated, and turned in the direction the voice had come from, seeing Ed and the older woman walking towards them, flanked by guards. "Edward Gawain and Moira Stone…"

"Commander, we found these two on the edge of the perimeter, and you ordered us to bring any suspicious individual to you for questioning." A soldier reported.

"Good work, soldier. Leave these two with me, and return to your post." Winter ordered, and the solider saluted before taking his men back to their posts.

"Commander, huh? You seem to be doing well for yourself." Ed said, and Moira scoffed.

"If you can call being an Atlas sellout 'doing well,' then I guess you are. I thought I taught you better than that, Winter." Moira spat, and Winter narrowed her eyes at the two of them.

"I have half a mind to detain the two of you for breaking my perimeter…not to mention leaving my sister like you did." Winter threatened, glaring at Ed, and Ed held his hands up, nervously laughing.

"Easy there, Win. All we wanted to do is pop by and say hello. No need to bust out the handcuffs or anything." He said, trying to defuse the situation.

"Cease calling me nicknames in front of my men, and we may be able to work something out." Winter said, the smallest, microscopic hint of a smile on her face.

"Deal." Ed replied, and Moira looked around at the soldiers. "Something wrong, Teacher?"

"Hunters and military blending like this…the whole thing puts a bad taste in my mouth. We're meant to be defenders of ALL of humanity, not just citizens of a certain land." Moira argued. "Let me ask you this, Winter: if a war breaks out, what do you think will be the first weapons out on the battlefield?"

"I hope we never have to answer that." Winter said, and Ed felt chills down his spine as the two glared at each other.

"Hey, Teacher, we might as well stick around and lend a hand while we're here. I'm sure Winter wouldn't mind another pair of eyes, right?" He asked, hoping to defuse the tension before things escalated. He knew full well how both of them got when arguing, and he didn't want the people of Kalico caught in the crossfire. Winter glared at Moira for a few more seconds, before turning to Ed.

"Very well. The Mining Union representative should be here soon, and you'll act as main security for the meeting. Moira and I will remain out here." Winter explained, and Ed gulped.

"Uh, you sure? I'll stay out here and-"

"Ed, do as she says. We'll do our best not to kill each other." Moira promised, yet, surprisingly, that didn't do much to reassure Ed that Kalico wouldn't be a smoking crater within the hour.

Winter noticed a car approaching further down the street. "Blue Team, target is approaching. Prepare for escort into building." She ordered into a commlink, and soldiers flanked the entrance to the Town Hall as the car pulled up. "Come on. We have a job to do." Winter stated, and she and Ed walked to the car as a scruffy looking individual in a suit that didn't quite look natural on him, the Miner's Union Representative, exited the vehicle. "Mr. Gibson, thank you for agreeing to this meeting. My name is Winter Schnee, and this is Edward Gawain. He'll be acting as your security for the meeting."

"Nice to meet you." Ed said, extending his hand, but Gibson didn't even acknowledge him, walking right past him.

"Glad to see you tyrants came to your senses. The sooner we begin, the sooner my men can start earning a living again." Gibson spat, and Ed escorted him towards the building. However, as they passed Moira, her eyes widened.

"Get down!" She yelled, pushing Gibson down to the ground, before clapping her hands. Massive vines exploded from the pavement to form a shield, just in time for a missile to impact and explode. Ed looked around the shield to see where the rocket had come from, and saw a man standing on the rooftop, holding a smoking rocket launcher. He couldn't make out any features of the man, but he could make out the importance of what he was wearing: the white uniform and mask of the White Fang. Almost immediately, the windows of the building across from them opened up to reveal dozens of White Fang members, all armed with automatic weapons. They opened fire, only for Winter to quickly weave a glyph and form a massive iceberg to block the gunfire.

"That won't hold them back forever! Quick, get Gibson inside and-" Winter began to order, only for the iceberg to shatter as a large body of mass crashed through it, landing on the ground and forming a small crater. It was the man from the rooftop, and Ed was now able to make out more features about him: he was extremely muscular, standing at about 6 and half feet tall, with tanned skin, wearing dark gray muscle shirt with padded armor on the chest, with separate armor on each shoulder. On each shoulder pad there were vials of dust, each linked to a series of tubes that sprawled out all along his arms and back, and both plates appeared to be linked to a dial on his left wrist. On his face he wore a skull-like mask with red markings around the eyes and teeth

"Now where do you think you're going?" The man asked in a gruff, and twisted the dial on his wrist. Instantly, fire dust began traveling through the tubes into his arms, red his veins turning red and his eyes burning behind his mask as they all felt the heat rise. The man clenched both fists, fireballs encircling both of them, and charged at Gibson with blinding speed, only for Winter to use an Air Step glyph to appear and front of him and block his punch, though she was still pushed back a few inches. She then created a glyph below the man, and instantly encased him in a block of ice. However, it was already beginning to melt from the heat being projected by the man.

"Edward, get the VIP inside now!" Winter ordered, soldiers already returning fire at the White Fang in the next building.

"Are you serious? You need all the help you can get!" He argued, aiming his right hand at the large man, only for Moira to hold up her arm.

"Do as she says, Ed. We can handle this." The older Huntress ordered, and tossed off her cloak. She wore a form fitting gray blouse with a pointed collar, with black combat pants and gray boots. On her right arm was a tattoo of a segmented dragon, and on her left was a snake tattoo that spiraled around her forearm.

Ed knew this meant she was serious, and nodded, taking the arm of the representative. "C'mon. You don't want to be caught in the middle of this." He said, and Gibson nodded, following him inside. Winter and Moira watched as the masked man melted through the ice Winter had imprisoned him in, and chuckled, cracking his knuckles.

"Well, looks like this is going to be fun after all." The man stated, and the two women rushed towards him, initiating what was sure to be a difficult battle.

Inside the Town Hall, Ed pulled Gibson along, searching for a safe zone, and soon came across an Atlas soldier. "Where's the safest room here?" Ed asked the soldier, as his charge had been reduced to a stammering, incoherent mess.

"Commander Schnee had us fortify the Conference Room in case something like this happened. Quick, follow me." The soldier said.

"Just like Winter to always expect the worse. Some things never change…" Ed muttered under his breath as they followed the soldier, eventually arriving at the door to the Conference Room.

"Quick, get the VIP inside and-" The soldier began to say as he opened the doors, only to be stopped by the sight they were greeted with: A room full of dead Atlas soldiers, blood from various stab wounds and bullet holes staining the furniture in the carpet. In the center of the room stood Margaret Harken, and she looked as if she was about to say something…only to cough up blood as a blade pierced her chest from behind, before going limp. Her attacker pulled the blade out of her body, revealing the blade was attached to a claymore that was slightly larger than a normal type, with a trigger beneath the guard. It was held in the hand of a male around Ed's height, wearing black metal armor on his torso, legs, and shins, over dark gray robes that went to a little past his knees. On the right shoulder plate was the White Fang's emblem, and on his head he wore a black helmet that covered his entire head, with a single, circular purple eye where his face would be.

"Well, this certainly makes my job easier." The man said staring right at Gibson, his voice electronically distorted by the speakers in his helmet, and the Atlas soldier aimed his rifle at the man.

"You bastard!" He yelled, and fired. The Masked Man used Harken's body as a shield to absorb the bullets, and once the soldier's gun clicked empty, drew his baton and ran at the man with a yell. Masked Man ducked under a swing from the guard and used his momentum to toss the soldier over his shoulder, and was about to plunge his sword into the Soldier's chest, only to dodge a green energy blast that was aimed for his head. Looking in the direction the blast came from, the Masked Man saw Ed standing with his prosthetic pointed, a circular port in the palm of his hand glowing.

"Get the hell out of here and hide." The green-haired young man said to the cowering representative behind him. "Now!" He shouted, and Gibson ran off to go hide, leaving Ed to stare down the mysterious swordsman. "Alright Spooky, I'm going to need a name. I like to keep track of whose ass I've kicked." He taunted, and the Masked Man seemed to be…evaluating him.

"Alright, but it won't matter. You'll be dead soon anyway. You can call me Percival." He said, rotating his wrist to swing his sword in a circle as he and Ed stared each other down, a tense silence filling the air for a minute…only for Percival to dash forwards and swing the claymore at Ed's neck. Ed quickly ducked and attempted to do a sweeping kick and knock Percival's feet out from under him, only for Percival to jump backwards a few feet from his opponent, pointed the tip at Ed. and pressed a button on the hilt, causing the blade to split and reveal a machine gun turret. Percival pulled the trigger, releasing a massive spray of bullets at Ed, only for it to end up ripping Ed's now-empty green cloak to shreds. Percival had little to process this, as he was forced to dodge a punch thrown at him from behind that left cracks in the floor. Standing where Percival had once stood was Ed, and Percival quickly analyzed his attire.

Ed wore armor that was reminiscent of the kind worn by Atlesian soldiers, only it was dark green with an emerald trim over a form fitting, blue long sleeve shirt, though Percival noted that Ed had neither the sleeve or armor over his silver prosthetic arm, instead having movable emerald armored plates along the arm, and that the armor extended past his neck to frame both sides of his face. Ed also wore black combat pants that bore green and emerald trimmed plates at the thighs and around the lower legs and calves, as well as black combat boots.

"Well, now that thing's off, we can get the real party started." Ed stated, the armor on both sides of his face shutting over his mouth to form a lower faceplate with slots in it to resemble helmets of Medieval Knights, a silver visor appearing to cover guard his eyes. He flicked the wrist of his prosthetic arm, and a silver bladed chain as unleashed form his forearm and extended over his wrist, the chain locking into the shape of a sword with a green colored edge. His weapon now complete, Ed rushed at Percival, only for Percival to take a nearby chair and throw it at Ed as his machine gun reverted to claymore mode. The young swordsman sliced through the chair, only to quickly bring up his blade to block a slash from Percival. They were in deadlock for only a second, before Ed began to push Percival back, the masked swordsman slightly thrown off by the incredible physical strength Ed possessed for a man his size. Percival had to jump back, before propelling himself off the wall and slashing at Ed, who was forced to block. Percival's momentum pushed Ed back, and Percival used Ed's shoulder as leverage to flip over him, landing behind the conference table. Percival kicked the massive oak table, demonstrating considerable strength of his own as the table flew at Ed, who used his sword to slice through the table. Percival took advantage of his opponent's distraction to run forward and slash from his left side, knowing Ed wouldn't have enough time to maneuver his blade in time to block it, only for Ed to bring up his left arm. The gauntlet quickly expanded and lengthened to form a shield, blocking Percival's strike, and allowing Ed to slash at Percival's neck with his right arm, only for Percival to kick Ed in the chest and knock him out of the room, hitting the wall of the hallway.

Ed had to quickly dodge to the right just before a spray of high caliber rounds tore apart the wall where he just was, only for Percival began to adjust hos angle of fire in the direction Ed had dodged, making Ed realize what his opponent's strategy was. _'He knows we're pretty equally matched in swordsmanship, but that machine gun mode gives him the advantage of range.'_ Ed thought, only for the spray of bullets to stop, and Percival burst through the wall, tackling Ed and slamming him through a window, sending them falling to the streets in the back of the building, while Moira and Winter continued their battle against Percival's companion on the other side. Percival landed on top of Ed, using his knee to keep Ed from using his weapon, and began to wrap his hands around Ed's throat and choke him, both their weapons having been knocked from their hands in the fall.

"You've got some good moves, but those'll only get you so far!" Percival yelled, hands tightening around Ed's windpipe. Ed placed his right hand on Percival's helmet, right where his eyes would be, and began to squeeze, cracks appearing in the helmet, but his vision began to tunnel as his air supply was beginning to run out.

 _'Dammit, this can't be how it ends! Not like this, not now!'_ Ed thought, his eyes beginning to close. ' _I need to survive! I need to see her, at least one more time…'_ He thought, images of a young woman with white hair tied in an asymmetrical ponytail flashing before his eyes. ' _I…I'm sorry, Weiss…'_ Ed thought, the end almost upon him…

When someone hit Percival in the head from behind, knocking him off of Ed. The faceplate separated as Ed graciously gulped in air, his vision restoring itself to reveal Gibson standing above him, holding a fire extinguisher. "Thought…thought I told you to hide." Ed panted out.

"Son, my mama didn't raise no cowards." Gibson said, offering his hand to help Ed up. Ed looked to Percival who was by now steadily rising, a noticeable dent in the left side of his helmet. One of Ed's fingers had managed to punch a hole right above his right eye, revealing a black eye that was simmering with anger.

"What was that you said earlier? About me being dead in a few minutes? So tell me, Dickface, how do your own words taste?" Ed taunted, aiming the palm of his hand at Percival. "As a concerned citizen of the Kingdom of Atlas, I hereby place you under arrest." Percival said nothing, only continued to glare at him as Ed began to walk behind him to place bindings on his wrist. However, just as he was about to tie them, Ed heard the faint whine of twin engines becoming steadily louder, before a Bullshark with the White Fang's logo on it peeled around the corner, massive tendril-like vines close behind, almost as if they were trying to catch it. However, the drop ship managed to stay just ahead of it before the vines stopped, apparently having gone as far as they could, and the ship hovered above Ed and Percival, the door opening and dropping a single rope. Percival kicked Ed in the chest, pushing him back, grabbed his blade from the ground, and grabbed the rope, the cable quickly pulling him up to the ship. Ed watched Percival board the ship, and the Masked Man that had been fighting Moira and Winter, his clothing in tatters and small pieces of frost on his right arm and his cracked mask, helped him up. The doors began to close, but not before Percival turned around to stare Ed right in the eyes. No words were spoken, but the message in Percival's eye was perfectly clear:

" _This isn't over."_ The doors of the transport shut, and the Bullshark flew off, quickly reaching top speed and putting several miles between them in a matter of seconds. Ed continued to watch the receeding dot before it completely vanished from view, even as Moira, her clothing slightly singed and blood pouring from a cut on her forehead, and Winter, her hair disheveled and scratches covering her body, came around the corner.

 _'Percival…somehow I just know that you and I will end up facing each other again And it's clear that, at the stage I'm at now, I won't be so lucky.'_ Ed thought, even as Moira and Winter began to question him about what had happened. ' _Just you wait, Percival. I'm going to become stronger, and next time…I hope you're ready to put your money where your mouth is._

 **Next Time: R**


End file.
